Momma's Boys
Momma's Boys is the sixth episode of the Season 5 and the overall sixty-first episode of The Venture Bros. Plot Hank and Dermott play a phone prank on Doctor Venture, reviving the tactic Hank took in Any Which Way But Zeus with the Teddy Talk-To-Me Doll to sneak out and play Shallow Gravy gigs, but their time of fun comes with disastrous results. Meanwhile, Dean is having secret night visits with a mysterious woman at a mental asylum who is revealed to be his "mother" Myra who has sinister plans in stored for the young man. Coincidentally Hank, Dermott, H.E.L.P.eR., and Henchman 21 end up in the same asylum after they pretend to rob a bank in a scheme to look for Teddy, an insane criminal they plan to use to trick Dr. Venture. While Hank and 21 are sent to the asylum for dressing up like the "villains" Enrico Matassa and The Viceroy (respectively), Dermott (as "Flying Sidekick") and H.E.L.P.eR. (as "CrimeRobot") are instead sent to jail. Also Dermott finally learns Dr. Venture is his father, after being helped out of jail by Dr. Orpheus. At the mental asylum, Hank and 21 meet various inmates, including Teddy, and learn that since that day was Mother's Day they had to be good for their mother. At night, the inmates hold a ceremony where it is revealed their "mother" is actually Myra, who has put all the inmates under her control as "Momma's Boys". Myra holds Dean hostage with the intent of having one of the inmates travel in time to his birth in order for her to finally give birth to him, revealing she is not the Venture brothers' real mother. Overhearing this, Hank exposes Myra as a liar and with 21's help they incite the other inmates to rebel and escape the asylum. As this happens, Hank and 21 retrieve Dean and slip outside where Dean laments once again not knowing who their real mother is. Hank then cheers him up by mentioning it was good that their mother was not really a lunatic like Myra. They quickly flee the area as Guild Wasp helicopters searching for the escaping inmates appear. Meanwhile, Hatred and Dr. Venture drive to save his friend "Teddy" who unbeknownst to Doc is merely a teddy bear with a voice recorder. Upon getting stuck in a ravine, Dr. Venture and Hatred have a death bed confession contest with Venture revealing he tricked Myra into believing she was his sons' mother while Hatred admits to somewhat enjoying his new breasts. Doc then decides to share his most personal secret by admitting "Hank's friend Dermott, that's my illegitimate son!" something that allows victory over Hatred who is shocked to learn this. Later Dr. Venture tells Hatred about Teddy and recalling Thaddeus' fake hostage situation, Hatred tries to inform him about his supposed friend. However, the vehicle almost falls into the ravine but they are saved by the real Teddy and Thaddeus bids the latter farewell. After he leaves, Venture questions as to what Hatred wanted to tell him about him as the latter covers up his explanation by saying Teddy was a burn victim, something Doc agrees with. At the end of the episode, Thaddeus is eating breakfast with all his sons and tells them of his night with Hatred as Hank tells him they saved Dean from Myra who they discover is not their real mother. Thaddeus admits to saying he wanted his sons to have free daycare as children and reminisces on his affair with Myra, which garners the disgust of Dermott who decides to leave for work as Dr. Venture continues relating their affair, which now disgusts Hank. However, this is soon forgotten when a leaving Dermott states "Oh, uh, later... Dad !" which greatly shocks the Ventures, who become completely silent. Episode Cast * [[wikipedia:James_Urbaniak|'James Urbaniak']]: Dr. Venture, Dr. Jonas Venture Jr. * [[wikipedia:Michael_Sinterniklaas|'Mike Sinterniklaas']]: Dean Venture * [[Chris McCulloch|'Chris McCulloch']]: Hank Venture, Sgt. Hatred, Teddy, Cop 1, Radical Left, Cuckoo Clocker * [[Doc Hammer|'Doc Hammer']]: 21, Dermott * [[wikipedia:Joanna_P._Adler|'Joanna P. Adler']]: Myra Brandish * [[wikipedia:John_Hodgman|'John K. Hodgman']]: Guard, Maybe Man, Cop 2 * [[wikipedia:Steven_Rattazzi|'Steven Rattazzi']]: Dr. Orpheus First Appearances * Big Time * Cuckoo Clocker * Enrico Matassa (Hank Venture's supervillain alter ego) * Joey Nickels * Man-Dune * Maneater * Maybe Man * Radical Left * Teddy Talk-To-Me * Unnamed Inmate With Beehive Hairstyle * Unnamed Inmate With Skull Head Connections to Other Episodes [[Powerless in the Face of Death|'Powerless in the Face of Death']] * Henchman 21 goes by the name "Viceroy", a title he first suggested in the support group for former henchmen in Powerless in the Face of Death. [[Tears of a Sea Cow|''Tears of a Sea Cow]] * In [[Tears of a Sea Cow|''Tears of a Sea Cow]], Dermott believed he was Brock Samson's son but finally learns that he is actually Dr. Venture' son. At the end of the episode, he calls him "Dad" right in front of Hank and Dean much to their individual shock. [[Any Which Way But Zeus|''Any Which Way But Zeus]] * Dr. Venture mentions his being held captive along with Teddy, which (sort of) took place in [[Any Which Way But Zeus|''Any Which Way But Zeus]]. * Hank first deceived his father with the Teddy Talk-To-Me Doll while attempting to torture him in ''Any Which Way But Zeus''. [[Everybody Comes to Hank's|''Everybody Comes to Hank's]] * This episode marks the second time Hank has learned of his father and Dermott's relationship. The first time was in [[Everybody Comes to Hank's|''Everybody Comes to Hank's]] but Hank's memory was wiped afterwards. [[From the Ladle to the Grave: The Shallow Gravy Story|''From the Ladle to the Grave: The Shallow Gravy Story]] * Dr. Venture confirms his knowledge of his relationship with Dermott in his death bed competition with Sergeant Hatred. It was hinted that Dr. Venture learned of his relationship with Dermott in the [[From the Ladle to the Grave: The Shallow Gravy Story|''From the Ladle to the Grave: The Shallow Gravy Story]] by estimating his age and recognizing his last name [[A Very Venture Halloween|''A Very Venture Halloween]] * In [[A Very Venture Halloween|''A Very Venture Halloween]], Dr. Venture stated "I have my reasons" when Dr. Orpheus noted he was very harsh with Dermott. In this episode he confirms that those "reasons" have to do with Venture being Dermott's illegitimate father. What Goes Down Must Come Up * The excavation vehicle first seen in What Goes Down Must Come Up is used by Enrico Matassa and his gang of "insane criminals" to break into the bank, which is already open. [[SPHINX Rising|''SPHINX Rising]] * Hank mentions the destruction of S.P.H.I.N.X. Headquarters and its factory from [[SPHINX Rising|''SPHINX Rising]].'' * Henchman 21 goes by the name "Viceroy", his chosen title when he lead S.P.H.I.N.X. '"The Morphic Trilogy"' * First appearance of Hank's Latin playboy supervillain alter ego Enrico Matassa, who doesn't appears again until "The Morphic Trilogy" of Season 7 ([[The Venture Bros. & The Curse of the Haunted Problem|''The Venture Bros. & The Curse of the Haunted Problem]], ''The Rorqual Affair'', and ''Arrears in Science''.) Cultural References Alateen * When in jail Dermott tells H.E.L.P.eR. that he can't call his mom for help because she once signed him up for Alateen because he smelled like booze. Alateen is part of the Al-Anon fellowship designed for the younger relatives and friends of alcoholics through the teen years. [[wikipedia:Arkham_Asylum|'Arkham Asylum']] * Dunwitch Asylum is a reference to Arkham Asylum, a mental institution used to hold the criminally insane in the DC Comics universe (mainly the Batman series). [[wikipedia:AT%26T|'AT&T']] *When Hank answers Myra's phone call to Dean, he says "Bula Vinaka, Beachside". This is a reference to a 1988 commercial for AT&T telephone service. [[wikipedia:Bewitched|''Bewitched]]' (1964-1972)' *When Dermott asks H.E.L.P.eR. who he can call and H.E.L.P.eR. suggests mentally summoning Dr. Orpheus, Dermott asks "Like Dr. Bombay?" Dr. Bombay was a recurring character on the TV sitcom [[wikipedia:Bewitched|''Bewitched]]. He was a doctor that treated the ailments of witches (that is, a witch doctor) who could be summoned by reciting a particular phrase. [[wikipedia:Brataccas|'Brataccas']] * "Grumpy Bandersnatch" is a reference to the video game Brataccas. Brataccas is believed to be the remains of the much hyped vaporware project "Bandersnatch," which was partially developed by Imagine Software. The cover for the game was drawn by none other than Roger Dean, whom Dr. Venture implied was Dean Venture's namesake in the episode Perchance to Dean. [[wikipedia:Dymaxion car|'Dymaxion car']] * The "Gravy Boat", the car Dr. Venture gives to Hank for driving to Shallow Gravy gigs, is based on Buckminster Fuller's Dymaxion car, a unique, fuel efficient vehicle with front wheel drive and only three wheels. [[wikipedia:H.P. Lovecraft|'H.P. Lovecraft']] * Dunwitch Asylum is a reference to the works of cosmic horror author H.P. Lovecraft, as both Arkham (the namesake of DC's Arkham Asylum) and Dunwich are fictitious settings in his works. John Wayne Gacy * When Dermott askes Gary if he "should get some lotion, or do you want to use blood and clown paint for lube?", he is likely referring to American serial killer John Wayne Gacy who would dress as a clown for children's parties. [[wikipedia:Lewis_Carroll|'Lewis Carroll']] * "Grumpy Bandersnatch" is a reference to the Bandersnatch, a fictional creature in Lewis Carroll's 1871 novel ''Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There'' and his 1876 poem ''The Hunting of the Snark''. [[wikipedia:Nutty Buddy|'Nutty Buddy']] * Dr. Venture is elated to find the highway rest stop sells "Nutty Buddies", a prepackaged ice cream cone topped with vanilla ice cream, chocolate ice cream, chocolate, and peanuts. Later in the episode he vomits it up. [[wikipedia:One_Flew_Over_the_Cuckoo%27s_Nest_(film)|''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest]]' (1975)' *When the Native American inmate Giant Indian rips the water fountain out of the floor and throws it through the window to escape, it is a reference to the climactic scene from [[wikipedia:One_Flew_Over_the_Cuckoo%27s_Nest_(film)|''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest]].'' [[wikipedia:Pink Floyd|'Pink Floyd']]s [[wikipedia:The Wall|''The Wall]] (1979)' * When turning the Momma's Boys against Myra Brandish, Henchman 21 says "Mother helped build the wall! Tear down the wall!" This is a reference to the songs "Mother" and "The Trial" from Pink Floyd's 1979 double album ''The Wall. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wonderful_Wizard_of_Oz The Wonderful Wizard of Oz] * While trying to locate Bygolly Gulch via the Gumdrop Forrest Sgt. Hatred tells Dr. Venture that "these are the kind of trees that disembowel scarecrows", which is a reference to the children's novel written by author L. Frank Baum, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and its various film adaptations. Thomas' * Dr. Venture goes into a brief digression about Thomas' brand English Muffins and emphasises their buttery nooks and crannies as in the television commercials. Thomas Guides * Dr. Venture tells Sgt. Hatred that his patchwork road map is three Thomas Guides taped together. These are a series of paperback, spiral-bound atlases featuring detailed street maps of various large metropolitan areas in the United States. Zoids * Gary tells Hank that he was over crafting when he was 7, not counting customizing his Zoid Liger model. Obviously. Production Notes * One of the animation directors (Kimson Albert) has a "nickname" inserted into his credits. The nickname is an unusual line or word from the preceding episode. For Momma's Boys the credit reads Kimson "Doll Withdrawal" Albert. Trivia *It's confirmed that Myra Brandish is not Hank and Dean's real mother as she mentions not having given birth to him. As this was happening, Dr. Venture confirmed to Sergeant Hatred in a near-death confession that he took advantage of Myra's mental condition in order to have a free daycare for his sons. Goofs *Dr. Orpheus appears to just learn that Dermott is Dr. Venture's son even though he found out in Everybody Comes to Hank's. *When Cuckoo Clocker gets up and announces that it's 5:00 the clock on the wall over the doors seems to be at 5:05. It is unknown if this is an animation gaffe, or perhaps he is just a little slow. Category:Episodes Category:The Venture Bros. episodes Category:2013 television episodes Category:Season 5